Imagine that you are standing with your foam tray full of chicken nuggets, 2% milk, fruit cup, whatever the vegetable of the day is, and wondering where you are going to sit. The cafeteria can be a very intimidating place for any student, staff member, or volunteer; let alone a student that has transferred in mid semester.
October is Anti-Bullying Awareness Month. I know that many school districts will be wearing orange on Wednesday October 19th to promote Unity Day. Many initiatives are promoted in schools by adults, I felt it was important to research what are students doing to address this ever present problem proactively.
I ran across an article that shared this wonderful concept called Sit with Us. The application was designed by a teen that had experienced bullying in middle school, and wondered where was one area that could be addressed to promote more inclusivity. She felt the cafeteria/ lunch room would be an excellent choice. She designed the application to encourage students to sign up and take the Anti-bullying Pledge and become "Ambassadors". These ambassadors would create an "Open Table" and other students would be able to select and sit with them. The application has drawn great attention and accolades for it's forward and positive thinking (see video).
The school where I work now would benefit from an application like this. The high school cafeteria has four lunch periods and multiple grades eating together in each of them. This could encourage students to break down the barriers and awkwardness that create stress and anxiety on a daily basis. I can even foresee the ambassadors using time to speak with the students about what is going on in school, to be more proactive in addressing the concerns students may not feel they can express.
I almost always see adults pushing the agenda more towards addressing these very difficult issues. It is reassuring that this young lady has taken the initiative to do something more towards bringing students together.
Monday, October 3, 2016
Sunday, October 2, 2016
Scratch Programming Site
My little sister introduced me to this awesome website called Scratch. This site is developed by MIT to help kids learn computer programming skills. Scratch is primarily designed for ages 8-16, but can be used by younger children with parental guidance. It's super easy to learn and there is no need to sign up for the site, unless you want the students to save their work. There are tutorials that guide the students through the process of creating their own animations. I have even followed a few and found them to be super easy. I believe the Scratch site would be a wonderful tool to introduce to students for creating fun projects where they can express themselves. It can even be used in the classroom during free time. My sisters elementary and middle schools have implemented 'coding clubs' as an after school program. I believe more school should take advantage of the Scratch site. The site has no cost, (which is great for both parents and teachers) and it can be easily accessed with a computer and internet connection. The "latest and greatest" computer is not necessary to run the site (for reference, I'm currently running it on a 4 year old laptop with Win. 8). All in all, this site is awesome! By using this as a teaching tool, your are introducing valuable skills that can help them gain a technological edge in today's rapidly changing technology market.
For more information, click SCRATCH.
For more information, click SCRATCH.
Netfilx as a learning tool
Many people have considered Netflix as a way of watching a movie or finding a good TV show to watch but it can have a good use in education as well. Many times watching a movie based off of a true story, or a well directed documentary is a great way to enhance the points of a lesson, however sometimes there are difficulties with this. Showing movies in class takes up class time, and sometimes students will be absent and miss the movies that other classmates saw. A great way to show movies would be to find one on Netflix. Netflix (Click here to visit their website) is relativity inexpensive at around $10/ month and will allow the student to go home and watch a required movie without hoping to find it at a movie store, or try to find a copy at a library. If there is a cost issue with students the instructor could set up an account and give out the password to students to be able to watch it on their own time. While finding the exact Hollywood might be difficult there is a extensive selection of historical and documentaries available.
Nicole Lane- EDT 211- Technology Teaching Strategies 10/2/16
Nicole
Lane 10/2/16
Technology Teaching Strategies used to Engage
Students:
According to edtechreview.com the five best teaching strategies using technology are..
1. Using
multimedia
2. Utilization
of social media
3. Use
a variety of resources
4. Making
most of games online
5. Use
technology to empower students to reach out and become engaged.
After reading why this list benefits teachers Id have to say I agree. Multimedia “stimulates the mind, in ways in class work
cannot, and educators hold students attention
longer”. I think educators would gain more feedback online, because the student
has more time to deeply think about what they want to write down on the screen. The
students can edit their words to make it sound however they want, just as I am
doing right now. I feel sometimes my words/answers in class do not come out how
I want them to, being online I can clearly state my point on a deeper level, it
gets into my head more when I’m typing and searching online, its like you’re in
a zone of yourself. Social media is a great tool to use, everyone and their
mother uses social media, so bringing social media to the classroom where
everyone knows how to work It, will allow the students to “collaborate new ideas”
and have fun with what they know. Using a variety of resources means to not
just “use books” allow the students to visit blogs, videos, podcasts, and other
learning sources online to gain knowledge from other sources. Using games online
in the classroom is rated one of the best ways to engage your students, I’d
agree with that, the excitement in classrooms when playing online games really
allows students to have fun and actually forget that they are learning
important information. I recall playing online games like “Kahoot” in my
college course, and for a moment I stopped watching the clock to see how much
longer this class will take. Using technology to empower kids to reach out is
personally my number one. Like I said above online communication allows students to think deeper, and to “have a voice”. Not everyone learns through verbal
written communication so they’ve allowed students to become more artistic with “modern
technology based art forms”. Teachers can use some sort of technology teaching
style for any type of learner, whether it be artistic, or introvert learners.
As you read this, think of the ways you the future teacher will use technology in your teachings, as for me, I'll be using all of them.
FarFaria
Are you tired of reading the same stories over and over to
your children? Then FarFaria is for you! FarFaria is like the Netflix of storybooks! FarFaria is an app you
can get for Ipads, iPhone, and androids. It offers readings for Pre K through
Third grade. It offers thousands of stories with new stories being added every
week. The app is designed to have magical islands with each island consisting
of different stories. Not only does the app offer a variety of story books, its
also has a feature for the story to be read aloud with personal narration.
Although the app does require you to purchase a subscription for $4.99 a month,
you can try it out free for 30 days! They also have special pricing for
teachers, if interested just go to the website and submit your information for
a quote. FarFaria also is aligned with common core reading levels. So it
selects books for kids based off of their particular reading level. I could see this being helpful because I’m
always looking for new stories to read to my students. I also like the feature that is selects
stories based off of the reading level that the student is on.
Technophobic Teachers
Using technology in the classroom setting at any given age is something that comes easier to
some teachers than others. There is a certain aspect that comes with introducing technology based
education in the classroom that involves an ability to understand the complete backbone of the
investment. Without the properly educated use of the technology, the ability to infer that we are
capable of advancing our teaching methods, is frankly inept.
The process of incorporating different and essential ways of teaching is not a method that every
teacher prefers, some of them would rather have a No.2 pencil in every lecture, margined and lined
paper, and required material in excess for the period of the class. Many of the educators that are still
inclined to use their native methodology are either "stuck" in their ways or even lazy.
In addition to the fear of using technology in classrooms, many teachers are afraid that they will
lose the ability to show newer generations skills that were once required for students. The ability to
write in cursive was once a very important aspect in the school system, now we can write signatures
on an electronic screen with just a scribble of a finger. In this mindset, teachers may have a certain
setback with some of the ages of educators, the more likely to be "technophobic" are those who
generally are about to retire or grew up without any type of electronic "gear."
some teachers than others. There is a certain aspect that comes with introducing technology based
education in the classroom that involves an ability to understand the complete backbone of the
investment. Without the properly educated use of the technology, the ability to infer that we are
capable of advancing our teaching methods, is frankly inept.
The process of incorporating different and essential ways of teaching is not a method that every
teacher prefers, some of them would rather have a No.2 pencil in every lecture, margined and lined
paper, and required material in excess for the period of the class. Many of the educators that are still
inclined to use their native methodology are either "stuck" in their ways or even lazy.
In addition to the fear of using technology in classrooms, many teachers are afraid that they will
lose the ability to show newer generations skills that were once required for students. The ability to
write in cursive was once a very important aspect in the school system, now we can write signatures
on an electronic screen with just a scribble of a finger. In this mindset, teachers may have a certain
setback with some of the ages of educators, the more likely to be "technophobic" are those who
generally are about to retire or grew up without any type of electronic "gear."
Saturday, October 1, 2016
Educational Technology
In the University of Florida there is a program that specializes in educational technology. It facilitates studies and spreads out ways in which new technologies, physical, virtual and blended learning environments help educators and learners play a role in today's changing society. Its international faculty are experienced in working with grades kindergarten through 12. They also have experience in post-secondary, and corporate environments. The University also offers campus based MAE, Ph. D., M.Ed., Ed.S., and Ed.D. degree programs, in curriculum and instruction along with a specialty in Educational Technology. Online certificate programs are also offered. Good luck in finding your career goals, and I wish you all well.
https://education.ufl.edu/educational-technology/
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